The MLB slate on August 20 is loaded, but three props stand out above the rest of the board today — and none of them require you to pick a lane. Forget “strikeouts only” or “batters only” articles. This is a grab-bag of the sharpest, most confident plays across the entire sport, and all three come from players who are absolutely cooking right now.
Gerrit Cole is a strikeout machine walking into a favorable matchup, Yordan Alvarez is in the middle of one of the scariest power stretches in baseball, and Elly De La Cruz just does not stop hitting the ball. Here’s why all three are worth a look tonight.
Gerrit Cole Feasts on the Orioles’ Lineup
Gerrit Cole (6-6, 3.22 ERA) takes the mound for the Yankees against Baltimore, and this is the exact kind of matchup that gets strikeout bettors excited. Cole is sitting at 92 strikeouts on the season and has racked up a 6.8 K average over his last 10 starts, well ahead of his full-season pace. He’s shown he can miss bats in bunches even against solid lineups, and the Orioles have been vulnerable to swing-and-miss stuff for stretches this summer.
Books have Cole’s line hovering around 6.5 strikeouts, but with his recent form pushing closer to a 7-strikeout floor on his good nights, the Over 5.5 Strikeouts number gives real cushion. Cole doesn’t need a career night to clear this — he just needs a normal Gerrit Cole start, and lately those have been trending up, not down.
If you’re mixing this into a same-game parlay, pair it with the Yankees’ team total — New York’s lineup has been getting to Baltimore arms all series, which only helps Cole cruise deeper into games and rack up more punchouts.
Yordan Alvarez Is Punishing Baseballs Right Now
Yordan Alvarez continues to be must-watch television every time he steps in the box, and his Total Bases prop against the Angels is one of the more appealing plays on the board. Alvarez is running a .318/.435/.613 slash line with 36 home runs and 143 hits in 124 games this season — an absurd level of production from the middle of Houston’s order.
The Over 2.5 Total Bases prop sits at -145, which tells you the market already respects his power, but Alvarez has been directly attacking mistakes over his last several games, and the Angels’ pitching staff has had trouble containing the middle of the Astros’ lineup all series. A single extra-base hit clears this number outright, and Alvarez has shown he doesn’t need many at-bats to make an impact — he’s capable of a multi-hit, multi-extra-base night at any moment.
Anyone tracking MLB odds for tonight’s slate will notice Houston is being backed as a team that can put crooked numbers on the board, and Alvarez is the straw that stirs that drink.
Elly De La Cruz Keeps Finding Barrels
Elly De La Cruz has been one of the most electric all-around players in baseball this year, hitting .259/.340/.468 with 110 hits, 20 home runs, and 199 total bases through 108 games. He’s a switch-hitter who holds the platoon advantage today, and he’s set to see plenty of pitches from the top of Cincinnati’s lineup against St. Louis right-hander Michael McGreevy.
McGreevy has had his moments this season, but De La Cruz has been relentless against right-handed pitching, and Great American Ball Park continues to play as one of the friendlier hitting environments in the league. With De La Cruz projected to hit leadoff and see four-plus at-bats, the Over 1.5 Hits prop is a fair number given how consistently the ball is finding grass — or the gap — when he squares one up.
De La Cruz doesn’t need a home run to cash this one. A pair of routine singles gets it done, and given his contact rate and the volume of at-bats he’ll see today, that’s a very reasonable bar to clear.
Lock These In
Three different players, three different prop types, and three genuinely strong reasons to believe in each one. This is the kind of mixed-bag card that rewards being willing to shop across the whole board instead of sticking to one prop category. Here’s the full rundown for today’s slate:
- Gerrit Cole Over 5.5 Strikeouts vs Baltimore
- Yordan Alvarez Over 2.5 Total Bases vs Los Angeles Angels (-145)
- Elly De La Cruz Over 1.5 Hits vs St. Louis
Whether you play these individually or string a couple together, all three are backed by real recent form and matchups that favor the over. Check your book for final lines before kickoff and get these bets in early.
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